


Biological Capatibility

by ami_ven



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Community: mcsheplets, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-13
Updated: 2014-01-13
Packaged: 2018-01-08 13:53:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 900
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1133409
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ami_ven/pseuds/ami_ven
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“The entry for this definitely used the phrases ‘biological compatibility’, ‘development period’ and ‘preservation of our legacy’.  Plus, it requires two people to operate it, just like the self-destruct at the SGC.  Therefore: biological weapon.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Biological Capatibility

**Author's Note:**

> written for LJ community "mcsheplets" prompt #123 "legacy"

“You _did_ read the database entry for this, right?” asked John, as they made their way down the corridor.

“Of course I did,” Rodney told him. “It’s a biological weapon.”

“What? It said that?”

“Well, no,” the physicist admitted. “Because the Ancients could never just _say_ anything. But the entry for this definitely used the phrases ‘biological compatibility’, ‘development period’ and ‘preservation of our legacy’. Plus, it requires two people to operate it, just like the self-destruct at the SGC. Therefore: biological weapon.”

“Okay,” John conceded. “Something we can use against the Wraith?”

“It would have to be. Ah, here it is.”

The room was small, a private lab, maybe or just an auxiliary one. A single square-ish console stood at its center, its top an Ancient monitor screen surrounded by control buttons.

Rodney started forward, but John caught his arm. “Stay put,” he said, and walked the perimeter of the room, P-90 at the ready.

“It’s a tiny room, what could there be?” Rodney muttered, but he didn’t move until John gave the all-clear. 

The colonel leaned against the open doorframe, while Rodney headed straight for the console and put his hands against the surface. It lit up, and he tilted his head to read the screen. 

“It’s still intact,” he said, pulling out his tablet and connecting a few wires. “Power readings are good, everything reads in the green… Sheppard, get over here.”

John frowned at him. “You do remember that the self-destruct should only be activated when you want to self-destruct something?”

“We’re not going to activate it,” Rodney snapped. “I need you to use your gene so I can monitor things.”

“Yeah, okay.” John stepped up to the other side of the device. “What do I do?”

“Put both hands on the console— yes, there— and think ‘diagnostics’.”

John did, closing his eyes and trying not to let his mind wander. From the far side of the console, he could hear Rodney moving around it, typing into his tablet and muttering under his breath. It was his usual, trying-to-figure-things-out muttering, so John stopped listening to the words, just letting Rodney’s voice wash over him. He made a disapproving sort of ‘hmm’ and the typing speed increased, followed by a ‘oh’ of understanding and more furious typing.

Not that John would ever tell him, but there was something soothing about listening to Rodney work, the continual sound that let him know Rodney was still there, still thinking. And for the first time, John found himself thinking about the future and always having Rodney by his side.

Suddenly, there was the crash of Rodney’s tablet hitting the floor. John’s eyes snapped open in time to see Rodney catch his fall with both hands, palms flat against the console, mirroring John’s.

The device glowed brightly, then dimmed again.

“What just happened?” John demanded, grabbing for his weapon.

Rodney snatched up his tablet again. “ _Biological samples compatible_ ,” he read. “ _Developmental process activated._ No, no, no…”

“What?” John repeated. “You turned it on?”

“No!” Rodney cried. “I mean, I can’t have— I didn’t— It’s still sealed, so there’s a chance I can—”

John put his hands back on the console and thought up the diagnostics screen again. He didn’t understand half of the data it showed, didn’t even have a plan, until something caught his eye. “Wait, Rodney, stop!”

“What?” the physicist snapped, but he froze.

“It’s not a biological weapon,” said John, stunned. “It’s a baby.”

“It’s a _what_!?”

“Aye, it’s a baby,” said Carson, once Zelenka and a med-tech without the gene had studied every inch of the device. “Or rather, it will be. At the moment, it’s still a bundle of cells, but according to the data from this machine, nine months from now, you two will be parents.”

He smiled, patted each of them on the arm, and left, leaving John and Rodney staring at the Ancient device.

“Parents,” Rodney repeated faintly. 

“Yeah,” John agreed. He touched the edge of the console with just his fingertips. “A baby.”

There was a moment of silence before Rodney blurted, “There’s no way we can do this!”

John blinked. “What?”

“No, I mean— how can we possibly do this without messing up? I’d never even _held_ a baby until Teyla had Torren, and now there’s going to be this tiny helpless person who’s completely dependent on the two of us! And let’s face it, we’re not exactly the most well-adjusted or emotionally stable men in the galaxy.”

“Hey,” said John, “We turned out pretty okay. And it’s— I swore I’d be a better father than mine was.”

“Yeah, but—” Rodney stopped, frowning. “You wanted kids, didn’t you? You’ve thought about it?”

John shook his head. “Not in a long time.” He looked back at the device, and added softly, “It’s one of the reasons Nancy and I divorced. She didn’t want kids, didn’t even want to consider it.”

“But you did?”

“Yeah,” he admitted.

“I never really thought about it,” said Rodney. He mirrored John’s position, hands resting lightly on the console’s surface. “Our kid is going to be a genius.” 

John looked up at him, a smile tugging at his lips. “Our kid?”

Rodney smiled back, then came around the device to stand beside him. “Yeah.”

“Our kid,” John repeated. “So much cooler than a biological weapon.”

“You tell her that.”

John grinned. “I think she’ll know.”

THE END


End file.
